To stay on or off site?? and some other advice needed

[DisneyDorkORama]

I need help for a friend.

My friend is wanting to take her daughter to Disney World in April. But she isnt doing much to prepare for her trip. I keep telling her that IMO Disney World isnt the type of vacation you just pack your bags and up and leave for. I try telling her how much money it will cost, how much there is to plan, and how she needs to start planning ASAP. And she just doesnt seem to get it. So I am trying to gather information for her.

First of all she hasn't even started saving money. She says she is going to use her whole tax return check to pay for her entire trip. That might work but..

She would rather stay off site, than on site. She thinks she will save more money staying off site than on site.

Which brings me to my question?

Which do you prefer saying on site or off? What are the pros and cons to both?

I prefer staying on site because, you dont have to pay for parking. It seems to be more convenient. I have never stayed off site but then again I have never really had an interest to.

 

[gules]

There are probably a lot of threads dealing with this, but it might depend on how much you want to hunt. There are also a few details that would make a big difference to your friend:

- What is her daughter's age?
- Why does she want to go?
- What kind of a trip does she want to have?
- Is she driving down or not?
- How much money can she expect on her return?
- Has she ever been?
- How long does she want to stay?

Depending on these answers, she really might have fun just jetting down there for a while with very little planning, but it would really depend on her preferences and her daughter.

 

[MomRN]

I stayed off-site with my dh, sd (16), ds (4) in March. We drove down and did 6 days of Disneys. We stayed at a Marriot suite.

I just got back from an on-site vacation with just me and ds. We flew and did 3 1/2 days of Disney. We stayed at a value.

I loved staying on-site, but the room would have been small for the 4 of us. Staying off-site was better in that situation. If flying in, I would do on-site, because I love Magical Express.

The only thing that she really needs to think about is dining reservations, if she wants character meals. Those can feel up quick. Which means she will have to consider what park/what day if not having hoppers. That's really the only pre-planning that's absolutely necessary, and that's only if wanting to eat at a specific restaurant.

 

[Robin K]

We have never stayed off site. We love taking the buses. We love going somewhere and having someone else drive. It will cost a little more but it's a cost we don't mind paying for the comfort of knowing we don't have to worry about driving.

 

[zianha]

I have done both on site and off site with different party sizes, but IMO staying on site just works out best. Because of a drastic financial event in March 2010, I had to cancel my on site reservation and ended up staying off site this Summer. It let me still afford to take my 2 kids on our yearly trip but I hated having to allow even more time than normal to get to the parks. Plus it was more of a hassle for us when we wanted to go rest at the hotel and then go back later.

If it's your friend's first time she may be overwhelmed by how big WDW is and I agree that she needs some planning, especially if her daughter is very young. All the walking can cause meltdowns for kids and adults if they aren't prepared. And of course she could overspend very unnecessarily on little things (snacks, child care items like diapers if needed, etc) if she doesn't plan first.

Like other posters have mentioned, it all depends on her exact circumstances.

 

[skiingfast]

I've stayed offsite. Hotel, rental condo, and timeshare resort.

I figure in the condo and time share I'd save on food. I did maybe 25%, because everyday around noon and evening I was in the parks. So I made breakfast a few times and then thought I'm on vacation and ate in restraunts the rest of the time on or off property. This ate into precious park time.

I also found going and parking or taking shuttle buses slow or expensive and inconvinient experience.

I opted for expensive off site room options and didn't save money. Though there are plenty of cheap little and sometimes dirty options offsite at a cost of half a Disney Value resort.

I no longer see staying offsite in my future.

EMH and for me DME are great benefits of staying onsite.

Perhaps she will find a room or free dining deal that will make staying onsite look extra enticing.

 

[Hootch]

food can be quite a bit cheaper offsite. That's especially true if it is a larger family.

There are several drawbacks. If she is driving, she will have to pay for parking which adds a $14/day (I believe). If she's not driving a lot of hotels provide transportation but many are inconvenient so a lot of time will be wasted. Unless they're going when parks hours are long, e.g. June - August, that may limit options. Depending on how old the daughter going commando doesn't work well with young kids - at least based on my experiences.

We have decided to always stay onsite. We've stayed at all three levels of resorts and any of them are doable. The transportation is easier. The EMH ares are worthwhile much of the time.

In essence it makes our vacation easier at Disney. Disney can be tiring and fun. We're looking for a little relaxation during that time along with the fun so easing life somewhat has a value.

Now if I looked at the cost in total and the difference was significant enough for me to not be able to take the vacation, I would stay offsite.

Some things you can do to help her:

* Sign her up for Mousesavers.com newsletter. It has some savings on tickets if they are going to the parks for five days or more.

* Point her towards the Unofficial Guide which can usually be found at the library. It has a section on hotels near WDW.

Point her to the Budget board on this site. Much of it deals with WDW savings. Mousesaver.com is also a useful site for budgeting and value information.

* Point

 

[Cheshire Figment]

For my first visit (from Northern Virginia) we stayed off-site. For about the next 20 or 30 visits we stayed on-property. After that we were never in any hurry, so we stayed off-site unless we were attending some special event where there was a benefit to staying on-site. All of our trips were before Magical Express, so we always rented a car. Of course, during many of our 2000 - 2003 trips we were searching out neighborhoods to move to when we retired. (See list in signature)

 

[PrincessTiffany]

We only stay on-site. We like the free transporation with Magical Express and to and from the parks from the resorts. We like the Extra Magic Hours. We like being able to charge things back to our room and being able to send any items that we buy during the day back to our resort for pick-up so we don't have to carry them around all day. And most of all, we LOVE, LOVE, LOVE the dining plan. There's no way I will every go back to Disney again without the dining plan.

 

[motherofallfans]

I've stayed on site (deluxe) and off. I find the Disney Transportation to be miserable - crowded and usually you have to wait. I like driving myself to the parks. I don't mind driving and don't usually 'sauce it up' in the parks so driving is not an issue for me. We bring our GPS which has comprehensive Disney programming so we never get lost.

Being able to have a large home-cooked breakfast helps keep food costs down and I love having a washer & dryer - we do a load every night so we can pack really light. But this only works if your off-site property is condo-style.

That being said, you can't beat the ambiance on-site. Disney knows what they're doing. But you get all the magic in the parks anyway.

Whatever you (you friend) chooses, hopefully they will simply be happy with it.

 

[luvmesometigger]

I prefer onsite. I like the whole DISNEY experience.

We are staying at the Contemporary this time. 3 kids. 1 stroller. I want to be close.

Every one had different preferences. I, for one, could not imagine packing everyone up into a car and driving back and forth to the parks. I like being right in the thick of things.

Once again, my preference.

Just give your friend some info and then back off. Nothing else you can do.

 

[kinghorse]

I used to stay offsite and then one year we stayed on site and after that would never stay off site again. The Disney Magic isn't just at the parks but the hotels also and there have been many times where we did last minute trips even going day of (we don't have to fly though). I think she should at least try to go in a value season which is lower cost and less crowds.

 

[powellrj]

Love to stay off-site! We use to do hotels and suites, but now we do condo and rental homes and I don't see staying on-site anytime in the near future. Even when we stay on-site we still rent a car because I don't like to use WDW transportation ( I admit I do have some control issues) so that isn't anything special for us and I don't like having to share space with my teenagers in a small hotel room. We love having our own pool and lots of TVs and bedrooms and wi-fi and a washer and dryer and a full size kitchen, the list goes on and on. I am not willing to give those things up for some Disney pixie dust.

 

[ZoZo]

It's important to remember that many people don't want to plan their vacation details in advance. If she's never been to WDW before, she probably doesn't realize what's involved. I've been to WDW several times, and really enjoy the planning process -- but most folks are happy just to wing it.

No matter how much you try to help her plan, she may be resistent. It sounds like you've approached her several times and tried to offer advice, but as you say, she "just doesn't get it." That's okay - you can't force her! Hopefully, some of the things you've said may "stick" -- but you can only do so much without being pushy.

I'd simply make one last suggestion to her, that if she wants to do things like character meals, she should make some reservations in advance (or she probably won't get in). That's the most important thing for "newbies" to know - if they don't make ADRs, they'll probably be stuck with counter service meals for the most part. Other than that, let her wing it!

 

[amichaell]

I prefer onsite. Not much to add to what has already been said:

-No driving: I park when I arrive and then take the buses wherever I need to go.

-Experience: Staying onsite is part of the experience. We are surrounded by Disney.

-Money: We do value resorts, which aren't any more expensive than a standard hotel, especially when you factor in the free parking at the parks (if you choose to drive rather than take the buses).

 

[calliemom]

Pros on site: The Disney Magic is everywhere! Hard to explain to someone who hasn't stayed on site before, but there's this definite pulse of energy that you don't get by staying off site.

Cons on site: Price, value for money not as evident.

Pros off site: Price, value for money goes a lot farther , quality of hotel might be better for the price , as well as hotel facilities for price much better.

Cons off site: exactly that , your not on site!

That being said we are staying off site this time!

Good luck

 

[lindsay0526]

We are staying off-site this trip. We had DD3 and DD1 and the thought of being stuck in a hotel room onsite would not be fun, and thus ruining our entire vacation. We opted to stay off site in a 2 bedroom condo- we can drive to the parks in less than 15 minutes (really the $12 parking is not bad when you are staying off-site and paying a fraction of the cost for your room), free internet, you can make meals in your room, and we have a washer & dryer. We are also opting to eat at 2 character meals and then do CS the rest of the time we are in the parks. It is a personal preference, so she can have a great time whether she stays on site or off.

 

[tinkangell]

We always stay on site. There is so much to do on the grounds that will not cost that much. Plus the disney magical express will take you right to the your resort with no extra cost. It is truly an experiance to stay there!

 

[yellowshell]

I found there was a thread that can help the MP's daughter who is going to the Disney first time. Search in this forum for this thread: What Disney Tip Are you really glad you listened to?

 

[p&tbrown]

On site-hands down. Wouldn't do it any other way. Keeps the magic alive 24/7